HINTS ON RIDING 113 



fall down. Thus in cantering in a circle to the right, 

 the animal must lead on the off fore leg; if to the left, 

 the reverse. 



In order, for example, to make a horse canter on the 

 off lead we should turn his head slightly to the left, 

 lean a little to the right (effecting this movement only 

 from the waist up), and gently apply the left leg so 

 as to force his hindquarters out and thus bring the 

 shoulder on the off side advanced. Practice will enable 

 a rider so to time the signal to canter that it will arrive 

 just when the fore leg on which she wishes him to 

 lead is raised from the ground, and therefore most 

 apt to lead when breaking into the canter. If the 

 hindquarters are forced out properly prior to break- 

 ing, the horse will lead behind in the same sequence 

 as in front, i. e., his off hind leg following his off fore 

 leg, and he will not be inclined to cross canter as he 

 would were only his head turned prior to breaking him. 



The slight change in the rider's weight, when she 

 leans to the right or left, will often, on a well-broken 

 horse, be a sufficient signal to the horse as to which 

 leg he should lead on. But the rider must not overdo 

 this, or look down constantly in order to ascertain 

 which leg the horse is leading on, for this can very 

 easily be felt, or be ascertained by watching the 

 muscle play of the shoulder. 



The use of leg, stick, and spur can, of course, only 

 be learned after long experience, and in any case they 

 should never be used without a preliminary "feel" of 

 the reins, and should only be applied gently and even- 

 ly, and never violently or suddenly, as is so often done 

 with an accompanying jerk of the shoulders. Aside 

 from its use in making a horse change leads, by means 

 of an evenly applied and very gentle backward pres- 



